354th MXS/AGE flight implements AFSO21, excels in performance

  • Published
  • By Airman 1st Class Christopher Griffin
  • 354th Fighter Wing Public Affairs
EIELSON AIR FORCE BASE, Alaska --  The Air Force has been going through a continuous transition of change to include force shaping, process reengineering and expeditionary transformation for almost two decades.

In the process of evolving into a more agile and lethal force, Airmen still need to support any mission anywhere in the world.

Based on a 33 percent reduction of manpower and only a 20 percent reduction of equipment, the 354th Maintenance Squadron's Aerospace Ground Equipment flight practiced this idea through implementation of the Air Force Smart Operations for the 21st Century program.

AFSO21's primary goal is to eliminate superfluous tasks, burdens and chores--whether it involves time, manpower, or money.

Maintenance workers said it was vital for the AGE flight to reorganize into a more efficient organization and develop a standardized workflow in order to produce quality results.

"The imbalance between personnel and equipment reductions forced us to look for ways to do more with less in order to survive and ensure mission accomplishment," said Master Sgt. Matthew Hopwood, 354th Maintenance Squadron AGE flight chief.

Meetings with key flight personnel identified organizational changes that enable continued mission accomplishment with the new constraints. A high priority on structuring sections in "cells" provided the foundation for the AGE flight to build a lean, flexible operation.

In order to achieve this, the AGE flight initiated 6S (Sort, Straighten, Scrub, Safety, Standardize, Sustain) and developed a standardized layout to clearly identify the scope of each cell, removed all safety hazards and turned in all excess equipment.

Another advantage to the new organization was an improvement in the training environment.

"With this process we improved on-the-job training which is now completed in five months vs. the previous 15 months," said Sergeant Hopwood. "The most important thing is being able to do more with less and increase quality at the same time."

The AGE flight reorganized into five cells for scheduled and unscheduled maintenance. Cell One inspects hydraulic test stands and air compressors, Cell Two inspects bomb lifts and generators, Cell Three inspects light carts and heaters, Cell Four inspects non-powered AGE equipment, and Cell Five completes any unscheduled maintenance, performs repairs of AGE, and handles equipment deliveries and aircraft deicing.

Each month personnel rotate to a new cell, allowing them to broaden skills and qualifications. After five rotations, each cell team is reconfigured into new groups to ensure standardized quality levels.

As for the results, "they speak for themselves," said Sergeant Hopwood.

"This flight has achieved the perfect AFSO21 model for the Air Force," said Senior Master Sgt. Daniel Morin, 354th Maintenance Squadron superintendent. "The methodology used to reorganize the flight was brilliant, all production channels are clear, simple and with purpose, and most importantly the results captured are proof of success".

Performance soared after a 33-percent manning cut, the AGE flight achieved 100 percent in commission rate twice in 2007--the first time ever. While maintaining a 98 percent quality assurance pass rate the flight achieved a 99 percent average in commission rate for the last year and reduced equipment down for maintenance by 98 percent within three months.

"The processes that have been created were the team effort of everyone in the flight, from the 3- and 5-skill level Airmen, to myself (flight chief)," said Sergeant Hopwood. "We developed a vision together and then allowed the vision to be improved through the up channeling of information from the mechanic to the supervisor through the section leader and on to the flight chief; this continues today as we find better ways of performing the mission."